wallpaper help

[janeyo]

Please someone help me!
OH and I attempted to paper one wall last iht in what will be our new bedroom. It tok all evening and we had only managed to hang 3 strips. Not even half the wall.
It looked good..... But this morning half of the top edges have come unstuck and are falling off and there are now shrink gaps between the strips. I can see the primed wall underneath.
It's a floral pattern so has to be quite precise with the match up.


AARRGHHH. How hard can it be? I am really tempted to tear the bl**dy stuff off and paint a feature wall instead.

What are we doing wrong?

[Rhona]

Where is the wallpaper from? My sis had the same thing after she ignored the instructions to 'only hang Laura Ashley wallpaper with L.A wallpaper paste.' They tried to use a cheaper version with B&Q stuff which didn't work. They went back to Laura Ashley, got the proper stuff, then did it with no problems.

Just a thought, but might not apply here. Hope you get it sorted!

[janeyo]

Paper is from wilkos and so is paste. I followed the instructions to the letter. I think. Never having done it before!
And spent a day googling it and reading up on how to do it!

[Jeanied]

It sounds like you needed to prep the wall a bit better first (if push comes to shove I have used diluted pva before now to get better adhesion) and also you need to stick to the soaking time rigorously - otherwise it shrinks wrongly. Try soaking a little longer than the instructions.

[scarey55]

One thing I always found was to get the paper good and pasted as it were It needs to be quite damp before you hang it. Sometimes I have one piece with the paste soaking in whilst hanging the previous piece. Hope my ramblings are making sense. Keep at it, it will get easier

[SueA]

Maybe you didn't allow the paste to sink into the paper for long enough Janey, you usually have to wait for about 5 mins before you hang each piece. Make sure you're brushing the paste right up to the edges too & not handling it too much as you're hanging it, maybe as you've taken so long to hang it you've been moving it around a lot & wiping the paste off with your fingers? You need to butt the joints up very close & if it's not a pattern with a raised pattern run down the joint with a joint roller. I've decorated every room in our house several times over & sometimes it's easier than others, a lot can depend on the type of wallpaper & paste etc. & I papered a 'feature' wall in the bedroom with a large floral pattern where the paper stretched a lot when hung & the flowers didn't match up perfectly but I couldn't be bothered doing it again, most of it's hidden by the bed anyway!

[kirsty b]

One thing I always found was to get the paper good and pasted as it were It needs to be quite damp before you hang it. Sometimes I have one piece with the paste soaking in whilst hanging the previous piece. Hope my ramblings are making sense. Keep at it, it will get easier

THats usually how I do it too. I let heavier paper soak for longer than thinner paper too.

Got to do spare room soon and am going to hang lining paper first, then nice paper on top. The walls in this house are awful, papering is the only way to go!

[Nicos]

Yikes- that was adventurous of you to start using a patterned paper!!
We struggled with plain paper which you can bunch up a bit too close to the next piece and rub it down with sandpaper- of fill the gaps with filler before painting over
I would have said you'd not left it pasted long enough before hanging too- and maybe not hanging it close enough to the other piece- they always shrink a little so you need a tiny ridge when abutting the two pieces.
Just a thought- how warm was the room? I don't actually know if it makes much difference, but I bought some stick on rubber insulation to go around the door and window frames- and noticed it should be applied at over 7C.

You can stick down the bits which haven't adhered very well- call in at the vets and ask for a tiny syringe and fill it with paste and poke it behind the loose bits.( or use a fine artists paintbrush)
If the gaps in between are driving you mad now- just rip it off and start again.
Good luck!


Edit- I've just remembered that when we're hanging, i run the paste brush down the wall behind the lip of the previous piece and a bit on the new piece side- it's easy to slide it around to make fine adjustments!

[Hilary B]

I used to help my Dad with the wallpapering, but I've not done any for about 30 years (ie after a few times in my own home) because I prefer plain walls with pictures and things added(and it's a lot easier).
The trick is to have 2 people doing the 'matching', one near the top of the wall, and one down low.
Never had wallpaper shrink after hanging when I helped Dad, or the times working with OH.
Attention to pasting details also matters, and so does what the wall underneath is like! What was the wall 'primed' with? How old is the plaster?

[janeyo]

wall is a new wall (plaster board, with skim, left for a month then primed with mist coat of water and emulsion.
No heat at all in the room yet.

[Glutton4...]

Painting is easier!

[FionaH]

Painting is easier!

Agreed, thats what I do

[rustylady]

wall is a new wall (plaster board, with skim, left for a month then primed with mist coat of water and emulsion.
No heat at all in the room yet.

Ah!!!! This appears to be your problem. New plaster soaks up paint and wallpaper paste. It needs a good priming to seal it before wallpaper will stick properly. Either a coat of cheap emulsion and left to dry, or a coating with thinned down wallpaper paste. I would go for the emulsion.

[RedThorn]

Agreed, thats what I do

same here Just means more time prepping the walls....

[dexterdoglancashire]

Sorry Im no help. Ive only ever done wallpaper twice before - never again! It doesnt help when you hang one piece upside down! We try to move house before we need to hang wallpaper - unfortunately that ain't going to happen this time and there will come and point soon when we need to strip the lounge and redecorate........not looking forward to it, but will bear in mind everyones helpful comments.